Whether it’s that scary clown that feeds on children, a fan who held her favorite author captive until he finished writing a book to her satisfaction, or a teenager with telekinesis, everyone can agree that Stephen King’s stories are truly in a league of their own.
King authored some of pop culture’s most famous and well-known villains such as Jack Torrance from “The Shining,” Annie Wilkes from “Misery” and Pennywise from “IT.” His novels have creeped and frightened countless people for decades, and he is still actively writing and releasing book after book.
What makes the “Master of Horror” so good at giving everyone the chills, and how do his characters stand the test of time and still have a strong hold on pop culture?
Unpredictable characters
Whether you are a Stephen King fan because of his novels or the film adaptations of his novels, it is quite evident that his characters are quite unpredictable. The inconsistencies of the characters of King’s novels is what makes the prolific writer a true household name in the world of horror. For example, his monster hit debut novel “Carrie” talks about a teenage girl who is incessantly bullied in school. She deals with a fanatically religious mother. One wouldn’t expect for her to do anything drastic as she was seen as the victim throughout the most part of the story.
Terrifying the ordinary
There’s the iconic image of Carrie bathed in pig’s blood after being crowned homecoming queen, ravaging her high school and killing everyone in it. Toward the end of the story, Carrie decided that she was no longer the victim by committing genocide, putting an end to an environment that wronged her.
One factor that makes Stephen King a genius is his ability to make the ordinary into something feared. King shows the world that sometimes the worse monsters or villains are regular human beings and some of the most dangerous places are not always what it seems.
His way of bringing out the fear out of the most mundane situations or people is what redefines the meaning of fear and horror.
Film adaptations
One of the biggest contributing factors of the immortalization of King’s novels and his legacy are the film adaptations of some of his best sellers. Think of these scenes: John Torrance trying to tear through the wooden door with his sinister smile; Annie Wilkes looking closely of her favorite author that she held captive with a knife; Pennywise hiding in the streets sewers with a creepy grin on his face, and Carrie in her homecoming queen look drenched in pig’s blood.